Optimizing Sales Performance –Cricket’s Secret Sauce Webinar

October 8, 200912:30p – 1:30p CST

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/132535899

About the Speakers

www.usa800.com 2

Tom Davis, CEO USA 800

tdavis@usa-800.com

Virgil Grim, Channel Sales ManagerCricket

vgrim@cricketcommunications.com

Dan Quigley, COOUSA 800

dquigley@usa-800.com

Agenda

• Webinar Goals

• Overview of USA 800/Cricket Relationship

• Overview of Cricket

• Outsourcing Decision

• Keys to Success

• Results

• Future Opportunities

• Lessons Learned

• Q&A

www.usa800.com 3

Webinar Goals

• Share best practices with other contact center professionals about how to achieve sales excellence and optimize sales performance.

• Discuss difference between sales focused organizations and order-taking organizations

– Soft Sell versus Up Sell

– Inquiry response versus Catalog Shopper

• Handling differences between the organizations– Cultural

– Profile, Recruit, Screen & Hiring best practices

– Sales process (needs assessment, etc)

– Training practices

– Technology solutions

• Show how with a successful partnership, results will follow– Shared success

– Open and honest dialogue

– No turf wars

www.usa800.com 4

www.usa800.com 5

USA 800 Background

• Founded in 1976– Over 30 years experience

• Nation’s Largest 100% Employee Owned Contact Center Organization

• U.S. ONLY based operations– Located in Midwest

• Double digit growth rate since 1999– No debt

– Industry leading financial benchmarks

– D&B Independent Ratings - 98 percentile

• Headquartered in Kansas City Missouri– 800+ Employees

• Three US Based Contact Centers, Fulfillment Operation and Data Center

5www.usa800.com

www.usa800.com 6

USA 800 BackgroundEmployee Ownership…the Key Difference

“As an employee owner of USA 800, Ifeel a personal responsibility to provideexcellent service on EVERY call. I know if Ido my job my personal stake in thecompany will continue to grow. I feel likea valuable member of the USA 800team and people care about me.”

Peggy WestCSR Owner Since 1997

You don’t have to be

employee owned to

have sales success,

but instilling a sense

of ownership and

career opportunity

has worked for us.

www.usa800.com 7

USA 800/Cricket RelationshipContact Center Solutions

USA 800 Offers:

• Dedicated, semi-dedicated, and innovative hybrid staffing models

are available to achieve cost effective results• Contact Center (90%)

• At Home Agent | Select Programs (10%)

• Inbound Sales– 24 x 7 x 365 live agent coverage

– 100% managed, After hours, Overflow, Disaster Recovery Support

• Web Chat / E-Mail Management– Highest growth business with experience in both sales & service

– Familiarity and use of multiple platforms (Live Person, eGain, Instant Service, Talisma)

• Outbound– Primary focus calling into existing customer base (up-sell, cross sell, win back, warm leads)

7www.usa800.com

Cricket Background

• Cricket Wireless is a subsidiary of Leap Wireless which is a spin-off of QUALCOMM

• Leap launched Cricket Wireless service in Chattanooga, TN in March of 1999

• Pre-paid wireless service provider offering feature rich monthly plans

• Launched Direct Channel in September of 2007

• Currently operating in 29 states and hold licenses in 35 of top 50 U.S. markets.

www.usa800.com 8

Cricket BackgroundSales Channels

• Before Direct Model was introduced:

– Cricket Owned Stores

– Cricket Exclusive Dealers

– Authorized Dealers

– Web

• Advantages of a Mixed Model

– Lower cost per acquisition

– Increased conversion

– Higher customer satisfaction

www.usa800.com 9

Cricket Outsourcing Decision

• In House vs. Outsourcing – it’s a big decision

www.usa800.com 10

Pros to Outsourcing

• Leverage best in class technology

• Expertise

• Variable Cost Structure

• Time to Market

Cons to Outsourcing

• Protecting your Brand and having Brand Loyalists

• Letting go of control of sales engine

• Disconnected from customer

www.usa800.com 11

USA 800/Cricket RelationshipKey Outsourcer Selection Criteria

Sales Experience

Culture/Partnership

Scalability

Speed to Market

Results Focused

USA 800 has delivered

• Improved results 300% over first 18 months

• Launched successful sales chat channel

• True partnership relationship established

Keys to Success

• Program Growth

– Program has grown from 50 Agents to over 200.

– Deployment of Live Chat in May 2008

• Keys to success

– Hiring and Recruiting

– On-boarding process

– Compensation

– Agent Evaluation

– Communication, communication, communication

– On-going training

– Agent Support Tools and Reporting

www.usa800.com 12

Outstanding results are achieved though a high level of customization beginning with understanding goals & objectives, involving the right people & expertise, customizing training design, delivery & results tracking, and delivering the right support for program execution.

Keys to Success – the Process

13www.usa800.com

Recruitment/Hiring

• Customize recruiting, screening, evaluation, and hiring

• Screening & Evaluation– Sales aptitude skills testing– Sales track record– Interviews with HR and

Sales Leads• Intelligence• Attitude, Desire• Competitiveness• Assertiveness• Motivation

www.usa800.com

Customized Sales Recruitment Flyer

14www.usa800.com

On Boarding

• On Boarding process leads to Elite Sales professional’s success

• Initial Nesting• High level review and oversight within first 3 weeks

• Sales professionals work together and build expertise

• Team Approach to Success• Sales Coach, Readiness Manager, Quality Evaluator, Center Manager,

• Feedback

• Multiple Reviews, Feedback & 30 Day Assessment• Side-by-side coaching

• Group listening

• Scorecard feedback & tracking

• Team Huddles & Reviews

• 30 Day Performance Review & Decision

www.usa800.com15www.usa800.com

CompensationPerformance Based Pay

The key ingredient to any successful sales program is a well balanced compensation program that pays for performance fairly

• Competitive hourly rate. ESOP stock, 401K with match, Paid Insurance, Incentives

• Earnings potential clearly communicated

• Pay for performance culture and success at all levels

• Agent stack ranked weekly based on performance

• Skills and priority routing utilized to route calls to top closers based on dynamic database results

• Performance shared, discussed, and celebrated

www.usa800.com16www.usa800.com

Evaluation/On-Going Support

• Building rigor and process in the first month is critical to success

• Results Tracking

– Real time agent, supervisor & center level sales tracking

– Custom web based reporting

• Support & Coaching

– Monitoring side by side

– Call scoring & feedback

– Team call listening & calibration

– Dedicated coach and readiness manager

• Dedicated Sales Quality Monitoring Resources

– Committed to sales process call flow execution

– Consistent quantity and quality scoring

www.usa800.com17www.usa800.com

USA 800

Creating a Performance Culture

Performance Improvement Cycle

• Clearly define EXPECTations

• INSPECT behaviors

• Listening & QA

• Results tracking

• ANALYZE opportunities for improvement

• Agents, team & program level

• COACH for Performance Improvement

18www.usa800.com

Agent Support Tools & Reporting

Agent tools should support:• Focus on the Customer (not systems)• Ability to access support tools, FAQ, and sales tips• Access to real time sales results & incentive

calculators• Manage key communications & time off requests

19www.usa800.com

Agent Support Tools and ReportingTechnology

Technology should support:• On-line Real time tracking of call & chat queue activity• Agent activity & results• Immediate performance results at multiple levels

• Close rates, Revenue, AOV, product breakdown• Interval, day-of-week, 800#, source• Call & chat disposition tracking

• Immediate incentives & rewards tracking• Online coaching logs for each agent & supervisor

20www.usa800.com

Success is Determined by Results

www.usa800.com 21

Phones

Web

Conversion

Conv…

Cricket Results

• Significant YOY year growth in conversion and orders

• The increase in conversion has provided ability to send more volume to the channel

• Orders have increased substantially with the increase in volume and conversion

Future Opportunities

• On site product training from our vendors

• Tools to offer the right product or package to the right customer

• Deeper marketing analysis on what programs and advertising is working

• Optimization of our chat tool

www.usa800.com 22

Lessons Learned

• Web Chat

– Placement

– Feedback tool

• Shift in focus from traditional KPIs to those that help increase sales

• Partnership

www.usa800.com 23

Q & A

www.usa800.com 24

To request a free copy of our Channel Optimization White Paper to better

understand how to increase revenue through direct distribution without

cannibalizing your retail channels, contact: tdavis@usa-800.com or

www.usa800.com and click on Resource Library